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A train sculpture which has become the target of vandals is to be renovated.

The Brick Train was unveiled in 1997 as a tribute to Darlington's proud railway heritage, but vandalism and fly-tipping has seen its condition deteriorate.

The town's Labour MP Lola McEvoy is working with Darlington Borough Council to improve the site, near Morton Park, after recent public concerns.

"To see it in such poor condition was heartbreaking – but I'm thrilled to see great progress now being made to restore it in time for such a significant moment in our town's history," the MP said.

Renovation work to improve the Brick Train will take place over the summer in time for the 200th bicentenary celebrations of the Stockton and Darlington Railway in September.

Improvements include replacing missing bricks, reinstating fencing and signage, landscaping the surrounding area, and creating a long-term maintenance plan.

It is hoped the latest round of works will help deter people from using the site as a dumping ground in the future, according to the Local Democracy Reporting Service.

Stories of pride

Ms McEvoy said: "I was here at the opening when I was 10 years old, and it was a big deal then.

"But if you're trying to find it as a tourist, you would struggle. We need to see more signage.

"It puts the area on the map and the town's railway heritage really matters.

"This generation need stories of aspiration, hope, and pride of what we've done well in the past."

Site managers Equation Properties and landowners BGO Logistics will also work with the council and MP to deliver the improvements.

Councillor Libby McCollom, cabinet member for local services, said: "The Brick Train is a Darlington icon, and I'm proud of the collaborative effort that's gone into revitalising this site.

"With 2025 marking 200 years since the world's first passenger railway journey began here, it's only right that this sculpture stands proud once again – a testament to our past and a beacon for our future."

A council will not survive unless it gets a fairer deal from government, the leader of the local authority said.

Liberal Democrat Heather Kidd said four out of every five pounds at Shropshire Council was being spent on social care.

The government said more money was being put towards adult social care over the next four years.

A government-commissioned review into funding of the sector is due to report back in 2028 but Kidd said the county could not wait that long.

"We're now reaching a point where it is very difficult to actually make ends meet," she said.

The government spokesperson said its review would publish its first recommendations next year "for a national care service that is fair and affordable for all".

They said the aim of the independent review was "to start a national conversation and build cross-party consensus on reform".

"The chancellor has announced an increase of over £4bn for adult social care by 2028-29," they added.

About half of Shropshire's residents are over 50 years old, according to the most recent census.

"Rural counties, particularly ours, have been significantly underfunded for a very long time," Kidd said.

"People move here and, 15 years later, they need social care."

She added that it was also more expensive to deliver adult social care in rural areas compared with urban, because of the travel involved, which demands more time and fuel.

The Liberal Democrats took control of Shropshire Council for the first time in May's elections and the new leader said she would lobby the government for more social care funding.

'Let down'

Kidd's comments followed criticism from Shropshire Lib Dem MP Helen Morgan, who said Rachel Reeves' Spending Review on Wednesday was focused almost entirely on urban areas and target seats for Labour.

"Trailblazer" regeneration funding worth up to £20m each was announced by the chancellor for 25 areas including parts of Stoke-on-Trent, Maidstone, Stockport and Swindon.

"People in Shropshire were failed by the Conservatives and now they are being let down by Labour," Morgan said.

"The spending review included nothing for Shropshire, nothing for rural areas and no serious plan to fix social care."

However, Shrewsbury's Labour MP Julia Buckley said the Spending Review would benefit the area.

"The budget for farming is increasing to £2.7bn a year for the sustainable farming initiative," she said.

"Then for transport, there'll be an increase in the Local Transport Grant that goes to local authorities to help them with cycle lanes, buses and also reducing congestion – something we really care about in Shrewsbury."

A project to cut down on clothing waste and save students money is hoping to expand after a "fantastic" first year.

Nottingham Trent University (NTU) said it launched the Professional Student Wardrobe project with charity White Rose to offer students free access to professional clothing for interviews and recruitment events.

It said the scheme has stopped 3,023kg of clothing from going into landfill, saving 11,711.52kg of carbon dioxide emissions, and distributed 2,850 items of clothing to students, saving them about £34,000.

The first anniversary of the scheme was marked by a celebratory display on 3 April.

Donation boxes for clothes have been placed on all NTU campuses, with the university also working with other organisations receiving surplus clothing across the city, such as the Nottingham Women's Centre.

White Rose collected and prepared donations for display in the Wardrobe Shop on NTU's city campus.

More than 100 students have been employed over the past year, the university said, with their work including co-ordinating donations, social media and "running the day-to-day operations".

Debra Easter, NTU's director of employability services, said the university was proud of the project's success.

"In the last year, we've given hundreds of students access to professional clothing, used to further opportunities through training and skills development, as well as leading to employment," she said.

"We're excited about what comes next – more collaborations and plans to help even more students. This is a fantastic initiative that is just at the beginning of its journey."

A British Steel recruitment event held in Scunthorpe earlier was well-attended, according to a trade union.

Just a few weeks ago, workers were facing the end of steelmaking in the town and the loss of more than 2,500 jobs, but after the government passed an emergency law and took control of the company, redundancies were cancelled and there are now 180 jobs on offer.

Martin Foster, a full-time Unite union convenor, said there was a "really good turnout" and described the atmosphere as "buzzing".

British Steel said they had a range of vacancies available, from apprenticeships to management roles.

Mr Foster said: "We've had a really good turnout.

"It was supposed to start at 10am. I turned up at about quarter to 10, and there was already a queue of the door."

Mr Foster encouraged people who are out of work to apply.

"This is about planning for the here and now, replacing those people we need to replace and taking people on for the future through apprenticeship schemes," he said.

John Kennington, who went along to the event, said it was "really busy".

His father worked at the plant for 26 years.

"Once you get in there [the works], it's what you call a career. And there's not a lot of careers around anymore," said Mr Kennington.

"There's still a concern there. But if the future is bright, [you] might as well look forward to the future."

Jermaine, who is taking his GCSEs at the moment, was also among the attendees. He is hoping secure an engineering apprenticeship.

He said: "It was a big worry when I realised it could close down, because it's one of the biggest providers to work with engineering.

"When I heard they were recruiting, it gave me some sort of hope to think, well, they might actually be able to keep this running. I've got somewhere to go."

Mr Foster said there was still a degree of caution at the plant around the issue of decarbonisation, adding the government intervention had bought the industry time.

He said the mood was now very positive.

"The turnaround has been so dramatic that this offers a massive opportunity and a good future for anybody who's looking for a job in Scunthorpe", added Mr Foster.

Lincolnshire on BBC Sounds latest episode of Look North here.

A woman paralysed by multiple sclerosis who has been chosen to receive Maundy money from King Charles III joins her husband in becoming a recipient in an "unusual and great honour".

Jean Almond, 73, from Eccleston, St Helens, will be among the 152 recipients at the ceremony in Durham Cathedral.

Her husband Geoff, 70, received his when the King deputised for his mother Queen Elizabeth II in 2022.

A royal spokeswoman said the Palace had no record of any similar instance in recent years.

Royal Maundy takes place each year on the Thursday before Easter Sunday.

It is a special service in which the King expresses his gratitude to those who serve and volunteer in their communities.

The ceremony dates back centuries when the sovereign would distribute alms to the poor.

Mrs Almond said it was "a challenge" travelling from St Helens to Durham and her debilitating illness meant she would not receive the symbolic money like others at the service.

"I can't even take the money from the King, I will just have to cup my hands like a beggar," she said.

But she and her husband said they "can't believe" they had both been chosen for the honour.

Three years ago, Mr Almond, who is a retired headteacher and a lay canon with Liverpool Anglican Diocese, received his Maundy money at St George's Chapel, Windsor.

"I was very moved when I received my money and I think it will be even more so this time round when my wife receives her money," he said.

"We can't believe it – this is a great honour and very unusual for a married couple to each receive the Maundy."

During the service, the King, whose first Maundy Service as monarch was at York Minister in 2023, will present specially-minted Royal Maundy money to 76 men and 76 women – with the 76 signifying his own age.

Last year, Queen Camilla distributed the Royal Maundy at Worcester Cathedral as the King was being treated for cancer.

What is Maundy Money?

The Royal Maundy ceremony drew inspiration from Jesus Christ's commandment given after washing his disciples' feet at The Last Supper.

The commandment or in Latin "mandatum" – Maundy is the Anglicised shorter form – which appears in the Biblical book of John was "Love one another as I have loved you".

The ceremony can be traced back in England to the 13th Century, with the first recorded Royal Distribution in Knaresborough, North Yorkshire, by King John in 1210.

From the 15th Century, the number of recipients has been related to the years of the sovereign's life.

Early in her reign, Queen Elizabeth II decided Maundy money should not just be distributed to the people of London and began travelling to various cathedrals or abbeys.

Each recipient of Maundy money is given two small leather purses by the King, one red and one white.

The red contains a small amount of ordinary coinage which symbolises the sovereign's gift for food and clothing, while the white purse contains Maundy coins up to the value of the monarch's age (which this year is 76p).

The coins are legal tender, but recipients normally prefer to retain them as a keepsake.

This year, the red purse contains a £5 coin commemorating Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother and a 50p coin which features stories of the Second World War.

In recent years, some companies have started offering the option to opt out of emails related to sensitive occasions like Father's Day. But for those grieving, the flood of opt-out messages can feel just as intrusive, raising the question – is this genuine empathy or just clever marketing?

I joined the "Dead Dad Club" in 2020, when I lost my father to vascular dementia. The first few years were hard.

So when UK florist Bloom & Wild became the first brand to offer an option to stop emails about big calendar dates like Mother's Day and Father's Day, it felt like a rare moment of genuine sensitivity.

At first, messages like "Prefer not to get our Father's Day emails?" seemed thoughtful – but as more companies copied the idea, the emails started piling up.

This year, my inbox has received more messages about avoiding Father's Day than actual Father's Day adverts.

Julie Lamont, a grief counsellor at Butterflies Bereavement Support in Eastleigh, Hampshire, believes the original intent behind opt-out emails was positive.

"I think the concept is lovely, it comes from compassion and understanding which is something we don't normally see in a commercial environment," she said.

But since more companies have adopted the idea, she said the gesture now felt like a "marketing ploy".

"What started out as a wonderful, thoughtful thing from Bloom & Wild has turned into something that has become tortuous for people who are coping with loss."

Rather than offering comfort, she said, the unsolicited emails could act as painful reminders and leave people feeling powerless over how they navigate their grief.

"In dealing with loss we need to feel that we have a modicum of control," she said.

"And if that is questioned… we feel totally manipulated."

Jumping on the bandwagon

Bloom & Wild's co-founder Aron Gelbard said the idea for opt-out emails came directly from customers, who asked if they could be excluded from receiving emails about Mother's Day.

In 2019, the flower company became the first to contact customers directly, offering opt-outs for sensitive occasions.

"We expected there to be some uptake, but the uptake was overwhelmingly positive – we had 17,000 customers opt out within the first 24 hours."

Despite concerns it might hurt sales, Mr Gelbard said customers actually ordered more at other times of the year because they viewed the company more positively.

Bloom & Wild went on to launch the Thoughtful Marketing Movement – a campaign encouraging other businesses to follow suit.

But as brands with no relevance to Mother's Day began adopting the idea, Mr Gelbard said it started to lose its authenticity.

"It felt like businesses were starting to jump on the bandwagon… and it was starting to look a little bit performative."

He also noted the volume of opt-out emails landing in inboxes had become overwhelming, with people getting tens, even hundreds, of the messages every year.

In 2024, Bloom & Wild decided to stop sending opt-out emails. Instead, they now offer a preference centre on their website where customers can choose to mute emails about occasions like Mother's Day, Father's Day, Valentine's Day, and Grandparents' Day.

"But we don't message people about any one occasion specifically," Mr Gelbard added.

Vikki Randles, a marketing expert from Reading, Berkshire, said the approach was about showing empathy by putting the customer first – but agreed it only worked when used appropriately.

"It has to be authentic," she said.

"If you're selling a product that's relevant to Father's Day gifting then yes, it's a responsible thing to do.

"But if you're selling, for example, children's toys – which aren't necessarily connected to Father's Day – then I would question their motives."

Despite losing her own dad eight years ago, Ms Randles said she usually did not opt out of Father's Day emails, as she still buys gifts for her husband on behalf of their children.

"Sometimes I think companies are damned if they do, damned if they don't," she added.

While it has been five years since Dad died, each Father's Day still carries a quiet weight for me, as it does for so many others.

As brands try to balance empathy with engagement, perhaps the most meaningful gesture is simply allowing people the choice to opt for silence.

A bookshop in Derbyshire has said poor communication over nearby roadworks has cost it tens of thousands of pounds.

Derbyshire County Council began a month of resurfacing as part of works at Brierlow Bar, south of Buxton, on 14 March.

The authority published a public notice to say four full weekend closures would be needed at the junction where High Peak Bookstore and Cafe is based.

Managing director Louisa Rogers said the bookshop was open as usual and accessible from both directions – but claimed the council's communication of the roadworks had driven away tens of thousands of pounds of business.

She said over the first six days of April, compared to the same period last year, takings were down by £12,000.

She said: "I obviously knew that it was going to impact business a little but I had a panicky phone call saying it said in the local paper that the Brierlow Bar junction is going to have four full weekend closures.

"I barely slept. It's nothing to do with the road closure itself, it's the communication – they basically told all our potential customers we're going to be closed for four full weekends, when actually we're not.

"I'm worried about all the 47 people who I employ, about being able to pay them at the end of the month, about being able to pay my suppliers at the end of the month.

"It's just really frustrating and the lack of consideration and care and communication from the council has been absolutely awful.

"They said it won't happen in future, that they'll make sure that they communicate with other businesses in future and tell them what's happening, and I'm glad that they'll do that – but it's not doing anything for me."

The council said it was "sorry" at the upset caused at a "popular" business and was "trying to minimise any disruption whilst we do these important works to improve safety at the A515/B5053 Brierlow Bar junction, in response to local requests and a sad collision history".

It said access had been opened up to the book store after discussions, and information for customers had been posted at the diversion signs.

A spokesperson said: "We've been trying to work with and update the owner and store staff as regularly as possible – as well as enjoying purchasing their fantastic coffee and cake.

"We do understand concerns about the weekend closure, but this is sadly necessary because of the work needed and the volume of traffic on this main road.

"But we've worked to avoid the Easter weekend and managed to keep the weekend closure to one weekend, despite also finding and needing to repair the drainage system, which should also help with previous road flooding issues in the area."

Work is on track to be fully completed by 2 May, the council added.

A preservation group hopes to raise £200,000 to purchase a meadow and woodland after a bid it placed on the land was accepted.

Rodborough Fields Preservation Group (RFPG) said it would set aside the 9.42-acre (3.8 hectares) site bordering the River Frome in Rodborough, Gloucestershire, for recreational use.

After the success of an informal tender submitted on 1 April for Lot 1 north of Arundel Drive, a three-year business plan is now being prepared.

The preservation group said further funds would be required to help provide community access and boost the biodiversity of the area.

Police have imposed a dispersal order after a fight involving a group of people in a city centre.

A knife was seized during the disorder, which took place at about 17:30 BST in Queens Road, Southend-on-Sea on Tuesday.

Essex Police said the order, which gave officers the power to direct people to leave the area, would remain in place until 19:00 on Wednesday.

"This order will have no impact on the vast majority of good, law-abiding people," said Insp Steven Baker, who revealed those fighting were known to each other.

Residents of a Devon village have been advised of a change of polling station ahead of the local elections on Thursday.

Due to "unforeseen circumstances", voters who were due to attend the polling station at The Ebrington Arms in Knowle are now asked to vote at The Church Hall on East Street in Braunton.

North Devon Council said it was writing to those affected to advise of the change.

Residents attending all polling stations have been reminded of the need to show photo ID if they intend to vote.

Deputy returning officer at the council, Ken Miles, said: "We understand that this change of polling station is likely to cause inconvenience, and we sincerely apologise for any disruption caused as a result of these unforeseen circumstances."